1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to eating utensils which enable people with hand and wrist disabilities, particularly limited range of motion in the wrist, to feed themselves.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Physical disabilities of the hands and wrists make it particularly difficult for people to carry out simple functions of everyday life. In particular, feeding oneself with ordinary eating utensils presents a burdensome task to such individuals, particularly individuals whose wrist movement is limited due to conditions such as arthritis. For conventional eating utensils the non-disabled individual must possess a certain degree of fine motor skills in order to pick up and hold the utensils. In addition, a non-disabled individual using conventional eating utensils must use a variety of different manipulations involving multiple muscles of the hands and arms, and involving multiple joints in the fingers, hands, wrists and elbows. Manipulations require a high degree of coordinated movement in order to successfully feed oneself without dropping or spilling the food. However, for people possessing disabilities, more particularly joint disabilities such as limited wrist movement, picking up and using the eating utensils is painful and requires a tremendous amount of time to execute a simple motion. By "conventional eating utensils", we are referring to forks, knives and spoons, known in the prior art which possess thin, small handles about one-half inch to one inch wide.
While modifications have been made to enlarge the handles of conventional eating utensils to provide an easier grip, this does not eliminate the wrist rotation required to feed oneself with these utensils. Desirably, eating utensils would be available that would avoid the drawbacks of conventional eating utensils and be capable of use without wrist movement.